Issue Nine Sidetrek: The Negative Zone

The layer of ice Agent X put down across the mud pool seems to have, at least temporarily, halted the sinking of the computer complex and put a solid layer of ice across the top of the mud pool. How long it will last, however, is anyone's guess (55 Karma spent).

Jericho is pretty certain his powers of electrical control will not allow him to do anything about the radiation coming from the pool.

*NOTE:The Power Stunts and Contacts listed here are for player reference so you can upgrade your own notes/character sheets. Future updates to this chart will only include the Contacts and Power Stunts acquired since the last time this table was posted.

Who hasn't had time to post but did tell me she wanted to move into close/melee range for attacks.

EnergyStar moves over to the Control Assembly [7d] on the bottom of the asteroid and begins beating on it with her (replacement) vibranium staff.

As she does so, your combined efforts must be taking their toll on whatever effect this high-tech setup is supposed to be producing; the Computer Complex [7a] which Jericho has been trying to prevent from sinking into the lake begins to surface again and the energy beam being broadcast from the transmitter [7b] begins to sputter as Quasimodo screams a highly-agitated "NOOOOOOOO!!!"

Agent X try" to make the ice on the radioactive mud poll especially hard. Once he has that finished he will pull back away from the asteroid. To try and see what affect the lack of a beam has had on the negative zone and the asteroid field.

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
When it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see nothing but me.

After another effort to stabilize the once-sinking control complex, Agent X pulls back from the asteroid to see if the loss of the energy beam is having any noticeable effect. While it doesn't appear so, it should be fairly easy to track where the beam was transmitting to; it couldn't be too far off with all these random asteroids floating by.

Jericho, meanwhile, pauses briefly to catch his second wind, having taken more damage than anyone else from Quasimodo's energy beam attacks at this point.

PowerSurge hurls another high-tech missile at Quasimodo as SueGnomi and MANAC also move in to attack.

After their attacks, the glass domes go dark. You aren't entirely sure what happened, but the robotic Quasimodo's intelligence does not seem to be functioning within the asteroid any longer. Either you defeated him, or his consciouness went...elsewhere...

The asteroid obviously disabled, the heroes move on along the path that the mysterious energy beam was being projected towards. The path takes them along the outskirts of a huge mist cloud until the heroes come upon a beam reflector of some sort, mounted upon another asteroid. The reflector itself seems unreachable, as if protected by some sort of Unearthly force field...

The purpose of the reflector seemed to be just to bend the now-missing every beam around the mist cloud. Continuing along the beam's projected path, the heroes pass a rocky debris field and begin to hear a steady "beeping" sound in their heads (give me a Reason FEAT for more info) that seems to increase in volume as they go on.

In a short while, the heroes arrive at the likely target of Quasimodo's energy beam: a gigantic metal tube that surrounds a pool of violent-colored light. An energy analysis of the device indicates an unidentifiable energy...but one that appears very similar to the energy in the portal back on Nop Yaan that brought you here.

A beam of energy projects away from the area, headed back towards the portal you entered the Negative Zone from. Another beam of energy is being transmitted to this area, from somewhere far off in the distance.

Things to consider at this point:
- The tube is large enough to enter, requiring a Agility FEAT at +4CS to do so.
- The steady "beeping" sound you hear in their heads (give me a Reason FEAT for more info).
- The beam of energy being transmitted to this location from somewhere off in the distance.
- The indicator lights on your bio-locators are glowing red (meaning the missing SHIELD agents you are looking for are alive and in the Negative Zone), but not green (meaning they are not within 100 miles of here).